Alpha Protocol's ambitions are commendable, and if you're a role-playing fanatic, you'll enjoy investigating its intricacies. It's unfortunate that its various ingredients are so undercooked. The flaky cover system, the mediocre production values, the fundamental blemishes gone unchecked--these elements add up quickly and drag the experience down. The elaborate storytelling and character progression are impressive. It's too bad that the gawky, glitchy gameplay can't rise to the same standard.
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Obsidian has the talent. We've seen the studio make great games that merge action and role-playing before. But in this instance their intel was bad and the mission a failure. From a squandered setting to dysfunctional gameplay to numerous bugs, it’s very difficult to recommend Alpha Protocol to nearly anyone beyond the most masochistically hardcore RPG fan. But even to those still considering, I’d lend this piece of advice: Treat Alpha Protocol like a covert government operation.  Pretend like it never existed. 
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Meanwhile, the plot sends you bouncing from one exotic location to another, which should be expected. What's surprising here is just how well the game manages to convey a sense of location. A safe house serves as a mission hub for each of the game's cities, and the unique architecture and style of each one really sells the idea that you've set up shop in Taiwan or Moscow.
Finally, it's probably worth mentioning that Alpha Protocol isn't a terribly long game. You could probably blow through the main plot in about a dozen hours, depending on how sidetracked you want to get with optional missions. That's not actually a bad thing, though. So much of the dialogue and story changes depend on your choices that it's absolutely worth revisiting at least once after the credits roll.
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